Thanks to the fabulous Phil Duce at IVP, my BST on the church is the right length, and they want my book on Application too. DoublePlusGood. From today, the offer of the free copy of The point of the Sword has gone, and I’ll replace it with another goody.
This morning’s topic of conversation in the barber’s is whether the universe is expanding or contracting. Seriously. I’m out my depth, so is the barber, but it’s clear that the likes of Brian Cox have put the stars on the agenda. Being out of my depth means there’s lots of places we can’t go. I
Os Guinness told a tale of an earnest young apologist trying to convince a sceptic that Jesus rose from the dead. After hours of argument about bodies and empty tombs, the sceptic caved in. “OK, you’ve persuaded me,” he said. “Jesus rose from the dead. So what?” Apologetics is about much more than arguments over
I have a theory about why most sermons have three points. No, it’s not that two’s not enough and four’s too many. and it’s not to do with Obama’s ‘Rule of Three.’ It’s to do with the way we preachers work. You spend hours in a week staring at the Bible passage you’re preaching on,
Jim Collins was on top form at the Global Leadership Summit this summer. He summarised his new book, ‘Great by Choice’, which I strongly recommend. But at one point he did something disturbing for a Brit – he attacked one of our national icons. Robert Falcon Scott is one of our heroes. Undeniably brave, and
I’m writing this eating my breakfast on the train. Which means a cup of rather weak black coffee, and a carton of microwaved stodge. Which brings me to preaching. Because I reckon we’re serving up a lot of microwaved stodge from our pulpits, and letting ourselves off the hook by quoting a bible verse or
So, you preached your heart out last Sunday, and you’re revving your engine for the next one. Prayer and the Ministry of the Word are setting your agenda, and your next sermon is an essential part of equipping the saints for their work of service. The Greek New Testament is sitting there waiting to be
A confession – I got this wrong in the past. Language of ‘finishing the race’ and images of batons being passed lead me to read 2 Timothy 2:2 individualistically, as if Paul wrote ‘And the things you have heard from me pass on to someone faithful, just as I have with you, and so the
“I don’t know how the church has grown. All I’ve done is teach the Bible.” The wise old Christian leader looked genuine enough, but I’m sure he was harbouring a secret. But because he’s a model for younger church leaders, they are going to think that he’s telling them the truth, and start to think
